Chris Scelfo Named Tulane Head Football Coach
Jun 21, 1999 | Football
December 7, 1998
New Orleans, La. - Louisiana native Chris Scelfo has been named Tulane University's 36th head football coach, according to an announcement today by Athletic Director Sandy Barbour and President Scott S. Cowen.
"I'm excited about the opportunity to be the head football coach at Tulane University, said Scelfo. "I got tired of just visiting New Orleans, so I'm ready to move here.
"We've got to get these players going and get ready to finish an undefeated season. Obviously, recruiting is the lifeblood of Tulane. We've got to get on that right away."
Scelfo, 35, comes to Tulane from the University of Georgia, where he spent the last three seasons as assistant head coach to Jim Donnan. Scelfo, who also coached the Bulldog offensive line, spent six years with Donnan at Marshall before joining him in Athens.
"There were a number of outstanding candidates for this job," said Athletics Director Sandy Barbour, "but Chris Scelfo is clearly the man for the job. He has displayed a history of success throughout his career.
"With his ties to Louisiana and New Orleans, he understands Tulane, the area high school coaches and community. I am convinced Chris will do great things for the Green Wave."
Scelfo has found success at every step along the coaching ladder. At Georgia, he was part of a staff that posted a 23-11 record and rebuilt the Bulldogs into an SEC contender. At Marshall, where he served as offensive line coach from 1990-95 and offensive coordinator from 1993-95, they reached the I-AA national semifinals five times, the national finals four times and won the 1992 national championship. Donnans's six-year record at Marshall was 64-21.
During Scelfo's three years as offensive coordinator, Marshall led the Southern Conference in scoring offense all three years, total offense twice (1994-95), and passing offense once (1994). Marshall produced the last three Southern Conference Offensive Players-of-the-Year under Scelfo's guidance in Chris Parker (1993 and 1995) and Todd Donnan (1994).
"I've known Chris Scelfo for a long time," said Donnan. "He's been with me as a coach since he came to Oklahoma in 1988. He's one of the bright young coaches in the country who has an oustanding ability in developing relationships with both his players and with recruits.
"I'm very excited for him and his family that he has this opportunity to return to his home state as a head coach. I'm confident he'll be able to continue Tulane's emergence as an outstanding college football program."
Scelfo also coached the school's first ever winners of the prestigious Jacobs Blocking Trophy, emblematic of the best blocker in the conference as voted by league coaches, in Phil Ratliff (1992) and Chris Deaton (1993). Ratliff moved from defense to the offensive line where Scelfo helped mold him into a two-time, first-team All-American. Deaton was a first-team All-American selection in 1993 and offensive tackle William Pannell earned first-team All-American recognition under Scelfo's guidance in 1995. At Georgia, Scelfo coached tackle Adam Meadows, a second round draft choice of the Indianapolis Colts in 1997, and All-American tackle Matt Stinchcomb.
Scelfo was a three-year letterwinner at Northeast Louisiana from 1981-84, where he served as team captain his senior season. Born in Abbeville, La., Scelfo prepped at New Iberia High School.
Following graduation from NLU, Scelfo spent one season as an assistant coach at River Oaks High School in Monroe before returning to Northeast as an assistant for two seasons (1986-87). He then moved on to Oklahoma, where he spent the 1988 season as a graduate assistant before taking over full-time duties as receiver coach in 1989.
The Tulane job marks a return to Scelfo's South Louisiana roots. The sixth of eight children, Scelfo has three brothers, Bobby, Frank and Sam, who currently live in New Orleans. Frank Scelfo has served as an assistant coach at Tulane for the last three seasons.
Scelfo is married to the former Nancy Caldwell of Warren, Ark. They have two children, Sarah Beth, 6, and Joseph II, 4.
